The injury report has not been kind to Soddy-Daisy’s football team lately, but the Trojans are moving past the first round of the playoffs for the first time in eight years after handling Clinton 42-19 at home Friday night in the Class 5A playoffs.
“It’s been a crazy two and a half weeks, and we’ve been hit with some adversity,” Trojans coach Justin Barnes said. “The guys have stayed calm and composed and responded well. They could have hung their heads after losing our two quarterbacks, but it’s pulled us together. It’s bonded them.”
The win was a complete showing by Soddy-Daisy (6-4), which set the tone on both offense and defense from the first whistle. A potent Clinton rushing attack got the first crack to score but was held to a three-and-out. The Trojans then scored on their second play on offense, a 54-yard run for Garrett Richardson.
Richardson added a 46-yard scoring run in the second quarter and went on to rush for 114 yards on just four carries, while his team totaled 266 yards on the ground.
“That was a dominant performance by our offensive line,” Barnes said. “I haven’t seen us run the ball that well in a long time. The weather doesn’t get any better as we go, so if we can run like that, we’ll be in good shape.”